When Crisis Calls a Nation to Pray and Seek God Together

Welcome Just hand Away Tagalog Sermon Podcast, your daily dose

of inspiring from heartfelt tagalog sermons from different pastors and

speakers all over the Philippines. We hope that this podcast

finds you in good shape.

And now here's your message. Thank you, Lord God, as

we get to prepare our hearts in our minds for

the Word. Thank you Lord that we can worship you freely.

And thank you God that you will speak to all

of us today as we dedicate this next few.

Minutes to your Word.

High Church, Welcome to our three pm service here in

Victory Green Hills. You know, before we get into what

I will preach today, I just realized this that we

are in a time of great crisis. I know that

the quarantine has been extended. Whenever we look at the data,

especially around four o'clock in the afternoon, we see the

updates on the numbers, and lately it's been very encouraging

because the recoveries are higher. But at the same time

we actually look at it in a total picture and

we see is their progress happening. Some of you, my

brothers and sisters, might feel like this is the biggest

trial that we are facing as a nation. I believe

that's true, but it's only.

In our generation.

If we look at history, we can see a lot

of things happen and it might have been worse for them.

And that's why, for some reason, we can actually appreciate

medical advancements because we are now a little bit more

ready than the epidemic that we experienced in nineteen eighteen.

I haven't been born yet that time, maybe some of

you were. But at the same time, we know this

that we should learn from our past and our history.

Why am I sharing this fact to you? You know,

us as people of God, also cherish the Book of God,

the Word of God, as part of our history.

You know, the Bible.

Has so many stories of how God has intervened and

how God has spoken to his people time and time

again when people need crisis.

And today I want.

To share a word of God found in the Book

of Chronicles, in the second Book of Chronicles.

You know, the Book of Chronicles.

Are stories of kings of the past, kings appointed and

anointed by the Lord, and we get to learn from

how they have encounter challenges in their lives and how

God has intervened as well. And I hope and pray

that we will all get encouraged as we go through

one passage of scripture, which is found in Second Chronicles,

chapter seven. Chapter seven is the time where King Solomon,

considered as the wisest king of all, was tasked by

God and by his father David to build the House

of the Lord in Jerusalem. And it was a grand project.

He was able to build it. And now as he

has built it, he has invited all the people of Israel, people.

Of God, to worship God.

As he prayed and dedicated this new House of the Lord.

What happens the glory of the Lord fills this temple.

The art of the Covenant is now placed in its

rightful home. And what happens as they worship God, God

has revealed himself through fire mehrumpum dumatna fire.

And it is a symbol of the faithfulness.

In God, in the presence of God in the lives

of the people and in that temple.

And so as the presence.

Of the Lord filled this new temple, this new house,

they begin.

To worship God. And for seven.

Straight days they did sacrifices. They thank Him, they were

praising him. The gratefulness of the God that we serve

in God that we have, and on the eighth day Solomon,

King Solomon now allows them we in Hayo.

It is done.

Soon after that, the Bible says, and where we are,

the Lord appears through in Solomon at night, and he

speaks to him, and he gives him some tips or

some instructions that he will have to tell the people

of God. And we find that in verse fourteen, and

it says here, if you have your bibles, please open

it to Second Chronicles, chapter seven, verse fourteen, and I

want us to read it together. But if you don't

have your bibles with you today, we will flash this

verse on the screen. And I hope that we get

to give reverence to the Word of God. Doesn't matter

if you're at home. We can still worship and give

reverence to the Word of God today. And so if

you're there, you can read meet Me. Verse fourteen. It says,

if my people who are called by my name humble

themselves and pray and seek my face, and turn from

their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven. I

will forgive their sins and heal their land. This is

our word for today. It starts with this. It says,

if my people who are called by my name? What

does that mean? In the net version it says if

my people who belong to me. The message version also

says my people my God define people. A good question

to usk today is do we consider ourselves as people

of God in our lives today? Do we consider and

say that I am a follower of God, that I

follow the ways of the Lord. This is the time

where we can reflect, Am I really a true believer?

Do I walk in the world ways of my God?

And so I believe that If your answer is.

Yes, this message is for all of us.

It doesn't give us qualifications of which kind of profession

that are followers of God. It just says it is

for God's people, and this is God's word for all

of us today. It says for my people to first

humble themselves. We need to humble ourselves. Why because we

can actually be doing things for the Lord with the

wrong heart. We can be actually doing things for God

with the wrong posture. Sometimes we can say, Lord, I

will do this and do that, so you have to

do this for me. Parent may return partan meron exchange

between our prayers with God and how he will answer.

Lord.

If I donate keelanan beginale, you will give me.

And bless me.

God starts by calling all his people to humble ourselves.

And so my first point that I want to share

with you out of the instructions of God to Solomon

and to the people, he starts with our posture. God

calls us his servants to humble ourselves. God starts with

this kind of instruction because it's also a heart check.

How are we today?

How are we dealing with this time of being at home?

Are we self sufficient people or are we God dependent people?

You know, the world we live in talks about a

lot about being self made people.

Self sufficient.

I can do things on my own, I can shop online,

I don't need help from anyone. But the reality is,

brothers and sisters, I hope you know this, that we

cannot do anything apart from the grace of God. It's

difficult to live our lives as believers without being dependent

to God. What is the posture of our hearts today?

Sometimes we also have this mindset that when when we

say we go to God or as people of God,

we feel like we are.

The privileged ones.

Our Lord Yamhan and jan kaias he lenox A suffer

chas leasa it because they don't have you. That is

not the right posture. Why, because we are representations of

the Lord, and so not only do we see ourselves.

The Word of God reflects where we are and what

we are going through. But the Word of God also

reflects how we should look at the people around us.

And that's what we're going to talk about more later

as we progress with the Word of God today. And

so it starts with the humble heart, It starts with

knowing that we are fully dependent on God. To humble

ourselves is to say, Lord, you are the king.

And I will follow you.

This is the kind of life that God wants for us,

that kingdom living that when Jesus came, he was saying

repent for the Kingdom of God is at hand. We

live in this kind of kingdom today. So my challenge

is as we write down what we learned from the

Word today, the first thing that I want you to

write down is this, we are called to humble ourselves.

It creates that.

Right posture, that right image that God is our God

and we are here his servants, ready to serve him.

I found this quote online and it says a posture

of humility brings God's presence to my problem. You have

to realize sometimes when we pray to God when our

hearts are not right par for me, No, I was

reflecting upon it.

Parents the Lord break humility makes.

Us go down to our knees and say, Lord, I

need you.

You know, I hope you realize this.

Today people are breaking down and going down on their

knees and saying, Lord, I need you. This is the

time where the people of God are being prepared by

the situation. And so if there's one thing that this

situation has given us, all of us, people who worship Jesus,

people who don't know him, everyone today is realizing that

they need someone to save them.

It starts with our humility to him. C. S.

Lewis said, this true humility is not thinking less of yourself.

It is thinking of yourself. Less gets you by ob

Sometimes you say humility is not o Lord, But humility

is actually thinking of others. That the life that we

live is not just about what we need. The life

that we live is not just about our concerns that

it's thinking about other things, and it is thinking about

how God sees others.

Being a blessing to others.

So this is my challenge as we progress and know

the instructions of the Lord, have a heart check today.

Am I moving in humility? Or am I moving in pride?

Christians are not self centered people. We are called to

be ambassadors of the people around us. We are called

to actually be the thought and light, the hands and

feet of Jesus to this world. So God says, it

starts with the right attitude. It's the right attitude in

our minds. As we continue, it says, as we humble ourselves,

God says, we need to pray. Our first thing that

we need to do is pray. We have been praying

for all our personal needs day. Hey Lord, I need

this and that's good. But at the same time, I

hope you know that prayer is not only made for

us and our benefit. We are called to pray for others.

The word pray in Hebrew is palal, which means to intervene.

It's getting personally involved when you pray for someone else.

Are you personally involved?

You know?

Lately I've been receiving Facebook messages, text, Viber messages, even

through Instagram, private messages of people asking for prayers. People

have lost their jobs, people who are sick infected by

this virus, people who don't have the means to buy supplies,

people who don't know what to do because their families

need help and they can't go out. My question is

when we pray for people in need, are we person

suddenly involved? Does it consume us? Or is it just

a prayer in passing?

Lords, Lord, they need something and Jesus name Amen, and

then we go through our life. Is our prayers in

passing or in passion?

Are we are we crying out to God for the

concerns of the people around us? Had I had my

Victory group this week and we were also talking about

prayer and as we use that jump start that we

had last Monday by Pastor Dennis through our Facebook channel

or in Facebook page, we actually talked about prayer and

for some reason, God impressed to me and to the

group that I was discussing this to that when we

pray to God, we actually.

Are interceding for others.

We're actually saying, as children of God, a Nato and Lord,

and so as children of God, what we're doing for

others is we are interceding that Please grant them their

prayer and that's why now I realize that whenever people

say but pak before I said, but, the reality.

Is as people of God, malas.

Take Lord because we are not only his uh service.

We are children of God. He loves us so much.

What does that mean we can actually go to him

and see, Father, I need you to inter I'm interceding

for my friend. He'll his mom provide for his family.

This is getting involved through prayer. It cond shows us,

It affects us, time for follow up answering.

Band the Lord in prayer, going deep, I will pray more.

You know, this is the life that God has called

us too. That we are called to pray for others.

We're called to pray for this land, our country. We're

called to pray for the people globally. We have our

friends who have relatives abroad. Our prayers are not bound

in the four.

Walls of our houses.

It reaches wherever we declare it to reach. When we

are praying for people in Italy, it will reach them

in the name of Jesus. Why because whenever we pray,

God works, and so this is the calling that God

has given us.

Today.

I like what Pastor Jay of our church in China

said during Jumpstart. He said, the policemen are called to

enforce the law, the government are called to organize the people.

The businessmen are.

Called to actually bless during this time of crisis. But

as Christians, as followers of Jesus, as people of God,

what is our calling and it is to pray. It's

to pray for one another. This is what God has

called us to do. And we can do that any

time of day. We can do that starting today. It's

not something that when we are just prompted to and

when we ask you to pray, you can do it.

You can do it on your own. And we're going

to talk about that how to do that later. Towards

the end of this preaching, Pastor Jay also said, as

people are called to do this, as front liners are

called to battle the virus, they devote time. And this

is what we realize in my victory group new Police

when they go on duty hearings and when I believe

it's twelve hours straight in the Babantai en Indienda Revelax.

When the businessmen I'm sure decided to donate. I'm sure

they had a zoom board meeting they discussed it. How

much will we donate, and so they put in time,

They put in effort in their calling, in what they're

called to do as people of God. How do we pray?

Do we put in time? Or is a ten second

prayer per day enough. We're called to pray for the government,

our president. We're called to pray for the Senate for unity.

We're called to pray for our local government, our mayors,

our barangday captains who are also front liners, We're called

to pray for them. How much time do we devote

in prayer in twenty four hours that we have in

a day.

How much time do we pray?

Is it more of just quick prayers? I mean if

a pray or are we actually devoting time to pray?

This is our calling?

Church?

If you are besides someone's again signia, God called you

to pray, this is your calling. And I hope you

guys are excited for this kind of calling because it's not.

It's not because of eloquence that you are atomic pray

to lain. Everyone can pray, no matter how simple or

how deep your vocabulary is. We all are called to pray.

So what kind of prayers do you give today? Is

it an in passing prayer or is it a passion

prayer where you are consumed, where you put yourself in

the situation of our brothers and sisters as they go

through childs Today.

I got reminded just now.

Is the level of your prayer the same when you

need something badly from God and when you are interceding

for someone else karaka passionate?

Does it also bring.

You down on your knees when you need something or

when you are interceding for others?

What's next?

The Bible says, or the word that we are discussing,

it says, pray.

And then seek My face to seek. What does that mean?

We see this all throughout the Psalms, all throughout the Bible,

that we seek the presence of God, we seek His

face today, that we fall short sometimes like Parentio, every

time we do something against God.

What happened?

We feel we hide from God, we feel we go

farther from God, get a new feeling. That's what's sinned us.

It detaches us from our closeness with the Lord. And

to seek God is to actually draw near to God,

to draw closer to God. And it's actually a posture

of the mind. It's actually a posture of the heart.

It's that focus and going back to the Lord. It's

God's presence and acceptance, and it starts with us drawing

near to Him. It's fixing our gaze and preparing our

hearts for our time with the Lord. And that's what

we do whenever we do worship. I've received feedback. Non

I invited a few friends, Oh, tune in, but I

can get ministered by the Word and Sameelah. When I

tuned in the channel of Facebook named Victory Green Hills.

After and even in our Sunday gatherings, I hear comments

like the service starts at five, but I'd probably go

in my five cantahan. I hope you know that singing

praises and worship to God is not like showing trailers

before the actual movie that you can skip it. I

hope you know that prayer and worship and tits in

offering and the dedication benediction is part of the service,

and worship prepares our heart for the Word. And that's

why I hope today know for if you are at home,

and if you could recall the times that you attend

the church, there's a big difference that God will speak

to us and minister to us if He has prepared

us as we worship. If anagagan worship, it prepares us

for the heart. And that's why our worship leaders are

ministers as well.

Why because they.

Allow us to detach ourselves from our problems, allow us

to surrender everything to the Lord, and for us to

be able to worship him. What happens, it reveals who

God is. Whenever we sing praises, it reveals how magnificent

and awesome God is that we're willing to devote one

hundred percent of our attention in worship and listening to

the word. And so to seek God is to prepare.

To seek God is to prepare.

Our minds and our hearts.

Are you preparing before you pray? Are you preparing before

you hear the word of God? I hope you enjoyed

the worship. But more than that, I hope you know

that when we worship, it prepares our heart.

It humbles us.

Actually, And so this is the che challenge that as

we pray, we also need to seek God. We need

to prepare for our time with God. It's turning away

all the distractions that we have. So you continue, It

says not only do we humble ourselves right posture do

we pray to God for others? Do we seek His

face as we get prepared by the word and to

turn from our wicked ways. God was telling his people

through Solomon that we still need to continually repent, repent

for the things that we have done wrong, repent for

the things that we have displeased God, or if we

have missed the mark of what the Bible says.

But not only that, we are also.

Called to repent for our people and for our land,

for our nation. Repentance is going back to the right direction,

going back to God. In the Old Testament, the priests

had to make sure that they first was repentant and

cleansed of their sins. Why because whenever they go to

the temple, and if they're not right with God, you

may tally pusilan paindaumaloyan tali ibi shabin na kunshum nasilan

Lord and the other priests would pull them back for

us to pray for the people, for our land, for

the Philippines, for healing. We actually still need to go

back and repent to God. It's being right with God,

it's turning one hundred eighty degrees and saying, Lord, I

will not continue the wickedness or the bad things that

I've been doing, and I will now run towards you

as we repent for this land, our nation. The question

is are we people who are also bashing the government?

Are we people who are angry at them? Are we

people who are the ones criticizing them? We need to

repent of that because that is not pleasing to the Lord.

The Bible tells us to honor the people in position,

to honor the people who.

Are leaving this country.

So we also need to repent of our race, repent

of the anger that we have, repent from that pride

of thinking that we know better than them.

We need to repent as.

We comply with the law. This is the right posture

as people of God. We need to pray for the

people to get involved. We need to seek God, prepare

our hearts and his presence.

What else?

We are called to repent and be right with God.

So the question is Lord, am I qualified to do

this for our lands? See no, no, no, no, no no no

no Solomon no, Noah's he David. I'm not one of

the Deshs. I'm not Paul I'm just Francis. Who am

I to actually go back to the Lord and say, Lord,

I am interceding in behalf of you. I hope you

know that whenever we come to God, the Bible says,

the righteous prayer is powerful. Whenever we come to God,

he sees the right righteousness of Jesus in us. And

that is the greatest change that when Christ died on

the cross, God does not see us as that sinful

person anymore, but he sees the righteousness of his son

in us. And that's why it's not what we do,

it's not what we have done for the Lord that

he will hear our prayers. It is what Jesus has

done on the cross. And that's why all of us

are qualified to humble ourselves, to pray, to seek, and

to repent, not only for our own concerns, but also

for our nation and also for what.

Is happening in our nation.

What happens when we do this. This is the instructions

of God to his people. It says, then I will

hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sins and

heal their land.

The reality is this.

That no matter how much we try to lock ourselves

in how much we pray for that vaccine to come,

I believe that it is only through the hand of

God that we will get out of this situation. That

if He allows us to find that cure, if he

allows science to be able to produce that cure, if

he allows that hand of healing to our nation and

to the worst of the world, it is only through

him that we can have that blessed life again, that

kind of life where we can go back to the

New Norman. Probably it is through the hands of God.

And so the Lord's promise is this, that he will

hear our prayers, not only that he will forgive our iniquities,

and he will heal our land. I know that all

of us want this, to heal our land, to healer land,

from this COVID nineteen disease, to healer land, from this

mentality of panic, to healer land, from this mentality of

economic meltdown. It is only through the hand of God

that he can actually wipe out all that anxiety, that virus,

and bring out the economy and unite once again the

people of God. This is our calling Church Tai and

Panginu on Para magdasal sabauwa isa parasaating bayan and my

prayers that we will be able to.

Embrace this kind of calling.

It says, he hears us, he will forgive us, and

he will heal us. So what do we do? Do

We just pray on our own. That's good, and I

hope you do that. I'm going to share more on

the application later. The Bible says in Matthew chapter eighteen,

verse nineteen to twenty, says, again, I say to you,

if of you agree on earth about anything they ask,

it will be done for them by my Father in heaven.

For where two or three are gathered in my name,

there I am among them.

You know.

The Bible shares that there is power in coming together

that whenever we pray, not only individually, when we do

it as a church, as a church community, when we

partner with someone and we declare and they agree with

that prayer, there is power in this kind of prayer.

And that's why every time Pastor Edgar would lead us

in our prayer time at lunch, their prayer points and

that's meant for us to pray with a partner, and

that's meant for us to pray all at the.

Same time, there is power.

Imagine when everyone is praying Victory Greenheels around four thousand epon.

Imagine at twelve thirty in the afternoon, everyone of those

four thousand plus hopefully their family members are praying for

our frontliners. That's a powerful prayer because that is the

unity of the people of God. So we are called

to do this together. And that's why as we preach,

we are actually encouraging people, all of us. Everyone who

is watching this, and if you know someone, you can

invite them to this. We as a movement here in

Victory Greenhills, Victory, Philippines, and also every nation has taken

part in our the Unite seven one four. This is

where they got the second Chronicles seven to one four verse.

And these are churches globally uniting us one to pray.

They have prayer points you can register, and what we

do here in the Philippines is you can alarm your

phone at seven fourteen in the morning and at seven

fourteen in the evening and this is a time for

us to prayer, and so you can join that. You

can search Unite seven to one four. They have an

online platform. We have a website for that and you

can join this movement as we pray and intercede for

our land. Okay, we're almost done, and so how do

we apply this word today? I just want to share

a few of the things that we need to do.

Number one, make a prayer list. Make a prayer list.

Of people that are seeking for healing. Put their names.

Make a prayer list for our frontliners for the things

that you want them to receive.

My ppe is the Maguanila.

On time food, make a list put there the government,

our president. Make your own list that you can open

before and during the time you pray. Set an alarm.

That's the second thing that we can do. You can

also include not only the seven, fourteen am and PM,

but you can also alarm at twelve thirty to join

us in our prayer meeting. You can actually alarm in

the afternoon if you have that time, and I know

you have that time. It a one class for an hour, Magagnan.

You have so much time, and so I encourage you

to alarm your phone. Number three, Prepare, Prepare worship God.

It helps me before I do my devotion to hear

a worship song. Sometimes I sing with it. And so

go inside your room, lock yourself in that room, just

worship God, raise your hands and enjoy the presence of God.

So you need to prepare and lastly pray. This is

the calling of God in our lives. I'm going to

say it again. God has made us into people who

worship Him and to pray to Him. And it's not

only for our sake, but it's also for others. So

when you pray, this is the question to ask. Are

you praying in passing? Are you praying in passion? Are

you involved in your prayers today? Lord, thank you that,

just like the prayer of Daniel. Lord, God Lord, we

just bow down to you and repent of the things

that our nation has done.

Lord.

Thank you that you are a God who hears us

and forgives. And so Lord God Lord, we pray that

you save us. Lord, heal our land. Lord, God Lord,

take away this virus in the name of Jesus, right now. Lord,

heal everyone who is sick. Thank you, Lord God, that

healing is upon you. Lord, that as you hear us, Lord,

God Lord, we repent of our rebellious ways. Lord, as

citizens of this nation. Lord, we are saying sorry for

if we have not supported the laws, if we have

grumbled against it. If we have actually disregarded the laws,

or if we have not followed it. Lor, we just

repent of our rebellious and wicked ways today. Lord, thank

you that as we come to you, Lord God, we

are petitioning. Lord, we are interceding for our name. Lord

Bohai bayen itold Lord God. Lord, it's not an accident

that we are Filipinos and you have called us to

pray for this country. So Lord, we speak a blessing

to the Philippines. Lord, we speak a blessing to the

lives of everyone here. Lord, unite our government today, Lord,

unite the people. Lord God, allow us to comply with

the laws. Lord, thank you that you will heal your land.

As we petition, as we pray and seek you, and

as we pray and repent of our ways.

This we pray in Jesus name. Amen and Amen, thank

you for listening. We hope that you enjoy today's episode.

Don't forget to share and subscribe to this podcast for more.

God bless you all.